§ Mr. FearnTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what plans he has to guarantee the confidentiality of patients' records stored in computers, in the light of the British Medical Association's report stating that doctors cannot guarantee their confidentiality.
§ Mr. Mellor[holding answer 20 July 1989]: The British Medical Association has frequently pressed the view that the Data Protection Act 1984 whose provisions were implemented in November 1987 puts in jeopardy the confidentiality of patients' health information held on computers.
The Data Protection Act in fact underlines the need for confidentiality of personal information and reinforces the policy long followed in the NHS that patients' records are confidential and staff face disciplinary action in the event of such confidence being breached.